18/01/2018

3 INTERESTS THAT I PLAN TO EMBRACE THIS YEAR

As a young person, I'm greeted with a lot of stereotypes. Of course, you're right in believing that 'teenage stereotyping' has never been up there on the list of most offensive prejudices and that's because, let's be honest, a lot of them are true. However, I am actually a little further out when it comes to what teenagers and students typically do and, as I was recently told by one of my friends (Jennie - she's probably reading this), I'm 'unapologetically a grandma'. Now, resisting the temptation to go on a rant and stand up for the stereotyping of 'grandmas', I actually feel like Jennie is kind of right.
She said this to me when, on New Year's Eve, I stood by watching everyone take shots of god-knows-what whilst cradling a warm cup of tea in my hands. Don't get me wrong, I forgive you if you're thinking 'gahhh girl get a life, live a little' because, right then, I was happily avoiding the god-awful dizziness and 'sorry; do my eyes not work?' feeling. I was doing what I knew would make me happy and, in that time and many times before, I just knew that that was the most valuable way that I could live my life.

Let me explain a bit more; for around a year now, I have preached that many people should be unafraid to embrace and express their interests. Whether that is reading fantasy novels back-to-back, baking, drawing, going on bike rides, etc. If that thing makes you happy, do it! Obviously, don't take my word for it if something destructive is what makes you happy - I really don't need that responsibility. You may call it morbid but, sunshine, we don't have long. The last thing we want to be doing is something that isn't making us happy. And of course, you may dislike your job but have no chance to quit for financial reasons, but that just makes it even more important for you to embrace the great things outside of that.

Anyhow, it's a subject that I'm pretty passionate about so, to avoid pure ramble, I'm going to get a wiggle on. Here are the three interests of mine that I plan to embrace this year.

NATURE WALKS

You should know this by now: nature walks are my thang. Plonk me in a forest full of tiny birds, unique plants, and perhaps a pond of some sort (oh, and dogs having the time of their lives too), and I'm a happy bunny. I absolutely adore the tranquillity of exploring a natural place. There is so much colour, inspiration, and new things to see in these places; I could marvel at them all day. As well as that, I have this perhaps bizarre fascination with mushrooms. If you saw this photo diary from a few months back, you'll know that Jamie and I actually went on a 'Fungi Foray' and there was actually a Mushroom Professor there to teach us about the different species. Since then, we always enjoy pointing out different types of fungi and have been recently enjoying taking close up/macro images of them. There is so much to explore out there, it's an interest that I'll never be shy about expressing.

In order to embrace this interest in 2018, I'd like to set a little goal to go on at least one walk a week. Yes, it might sound a bit much but I really do hope it's something that I can achieve.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

You won't believe how many people I have spoken to over the past few years who have sneered when I say 'I'm going to Uni to do English'. Their faces just seem to drop as if I'm setting myself up to watch paint dry. I completely get it, English isn't your cup of tea. Maths isn't my cup of tea. Sorted. But let's let each other thrive in our excitement for something. To me, when I hear someone talk about UK accents, or how well their child is developing language, or even how 'we borrowed that word from the French', my ears perk up like a cat. That sh*t picks me up and drops me smack-bang in the middle of that conversation. Take my Uncle for example - he teaches English to Spanish students and has a lot of background in English Language so, one day after Christmas, we sat for FOUR HOURS blabbering on about English. And guess what, I had such a good time. I enjoyed myself so much; basking in my little world of what some would call 'nerd talk'.

This year I am well equipt with books about English (as well as heading off to Uni to start studying it again this year) and I am not going to let a sneer or a face-drop get in my way.

BLOGGING

I guess, for me, blogging was something that was always a little taboo throughout school but now that I'm away from it and possibly heading on to be around more mature people (please), I am finding it easier to embrace. You may or may not know that this little blog of mine has been cooking for a mighty 5 years which means that it started when I was in Secondary school. Despite my blog definitely not being as fully flourished as it is now, there was always a few kids that found it extremely strange (for some reason). Then, in college, apart from practically stopping the blog, there was always that element of people thinking I was pretentious. Now, on a gap year and with a fairly confident blog style, my chin is up and I'm really happy with how my blog is growing. The only people that I tend to surround myself with now are the kind of people that are positive about my blog and, both with that help and my own passion, it's becoming something that I can really embrace.

By welcoming these interests, I hope that I can make 2018 a year of happiness.